Conspiracy

Analog survival in a digital age

Was one of Panamarenko’s most iconic pieces inspired by a ’70s Nazi hoax? Follow me across a weird and wonderful story past twentieth century legends and pop-culture folklore. At the very least, you’ll learn about a few sensational tales and have a more profound appreciation for my favorite artist’s work, I promise.

Quite an interesting (and very current) conspiracy theory popped-up recently: one claiming that Donald Trump is running a false flag campaign to become the republican nominee / American president. Conspiracy theorists claim that his hidden objective is to support Hillary Clinton’s attempt at the Oval Office. Sounds ludicrous at first glance, but so does his rhetoric. Worth the read.

When Russia recently publicly announced to have serious doubts about the validity of the American moon landing, and even called for an investigation, I remembered my great grandmother always raising the exact same point. Turns out there actually are serious arguments against such a mission! While researching this matter online, I came across a strange fictional ‘mockumentary’, presented without any tongue-in-cheek notions and a very serious tone. If I’d be a conspiracy nutter, I would label it as disinformation. More valid documentaries under continue reading.

Were the Germans developing flying saucers during World War II, as part of their wunderwaffen that were supposed to win them the war? Are UFOs really these crafts, having been further developed under the American flag, since the war? I really have no idea but it makes a highly interesting story, linked to many other conspiracies: Project Paperclip, Roswell, the disappearance of Hans Kammler, the Antarctic Nazi bases, project Highjump, the case of Victor Schauberger, etc. All great fun, and to be watched with either crisps or popcorn 🙂

This time, a conspiracy theory from a completely different realm: the music industry. A long standing contemporary legend claims that Paul McCartney died in a car crash in 1966 and that an impersonator took his place right after the tragic event. As far as I am aware of, no professional documentary is available on this subject. The best ones available are included underneath. Black Bag has an excellent article on the subject, as does wikipedia. Snagfilms has a spoof mocumentary on the subject.

For 3 consecutive years (2012, 2013, 2014, … not 2015, though) a mysterious organization called Cicada 3301 posted extremely hard and elaborate puzzles online, sometimes with real-world clues appearing all over the world. Their intent is to find highly intelligent individuals, but not much more is known. Is the intelligence community behind this? Headhunters? No-one knows. A fascinating digital mystery. More info if you continue reading.

The story of RMS Titanic has been in the collective memory for more than a century and does not need any introduction. Or does it? Persistent rumors insist to this day that Titanic was switched with sister ship RMS Olympic, which sank in an insurance scam. Another documentary if you continue reading.

Without any doubt, it was the theft of the paintingThe Righteous Judges – one of the panels of a Christian altar piece of the Saint Bavo cathedral (Ghent, BE) – that got me hooked on these stories. In fact, it was this book (now scarcely available) that started it all. The case is not very widely known outside of Belgium, but encompasses unexplained theft, cryptic clues, nazi investigators, and has a direct link to the Da Vinci Code and the mystery of Rennes-le-Château. Underneath is a well-known dutch-spoken documentary (produced in 1992) that got many people hooked. No English piece seems to be available, sorry. I would like to encourage you to read up on the subject: the story peels away like an onion. If you can, track down the book mentioned above. If you can’t, this is another good place to start.